The Dawn of Love
by Cuthbert72
Summary: Neville is miserable and lonely. He is sitting in front of the castle pondering his situation when he hears the most beautiful sound he has ever heard.
1. Chapter 1: The Dawn of Love

**Chapter 1: The Dawn of Love**

Neville was pondering his life. He was not feeling happy. He had just returned to Hogwarts after his summer holidays. His Grandmother had been particularly stern with him and, in a way he was glad to be back in the school he called home among people who did, at least, accept him.

It was evening. He had finished his dinner. He was sitting in the last of the evening sunshine on the grassy slope in front of the castle. In front of him, at the bottom of the slope was Hagrid's hut and the Forbidden Forest. He was musing about friendship and the fact that, although he now felt accepted, he did not have any really close friends. In fact, he was a slight outcast.

He was looking down the glen towards the lake, when he sensed that someone was sitting next to him.

"Penny for your thoughts." said a light airy, but soothing voice.

It was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard. He looked round.

The owner of the voice was a very pretty, blonde girl with prominent ice blue eyes and a winning smile. She was wearing earrings in the form of radishes.

"You're Luna Lovegood aren't you?" asked Neville, "Why should you want to talk to a nonentity like me? I'm Neville by the way."

Luna smiled sweetly and rested her hand on Neville's knee.

"I am Luna," said Luna, "And you're not a nonentity. I know you're Neville. You should stop thinking that way. You're just a shy young man, who should have a better opinion of himself."

"You've noticed me?" said Neville, posing a question.

"Of course I've noticed you." Said Luna, "I've noticed that you look towards me at mealtimes and look away rapidly when you think I'm looking towards you."

"I – I'm sorry. I'll stop looking at you." said Neville, somewhat crestfallen.

"Oh you silly billy!" said Luna, smiling sweetly, "I didn't mean it that way. It's nice when someone notices me. You needn't look away when I look your way. You won't see my smile. Don't be so shy."

"Don't take this the wrong way," said Neville, "But I like looking at you. You seem to be a beacon of brightness on the Ravenclaw table."

"And I guess you'd like to 'get to know me'?" said Luna, looking into Neville's eyes and smiling brightly.

"I – I – er – I – er!" was all that Neville was able to say.

Luna's sweet charm had rendered him speechless.

"I'll take that as a 'yes'." said Luna, smiling and giving Neville a gentle peck on the cheek, "Don't worry, I won't eat you. I'd like to know you better as well."

"You would?" asked Neville.

"Of course." said Luna, sweetly, "I can't put my finger on it, but I believe there's something special about you."

"You do?" asked Neville.

"Yes!" said Luna, "You see yourself as a shy, awkward, timid boy. The sorting hat put you in Gryffindor for a reason. I see a potentially brave competent young man, who will know where he's going. Your time is to come. I'd like to be there when it does. Anyway, why would you want to be closer to me?"

Neville was somewhat dumbfounded by Luna's wonderful words. It took him a while to get his thoughts together and pluck up the courage to answer Luna's question.

"I - I noticed you last year." said Neville, "I noticed your bright smile and your apparently carefree disposition. I learnt that you were thought of as 'strange'. I didn't like that your housemates called you 'Looney'. I felt that I would like to be close to you in the vain hope that some of that brightness would rub off on me."

"Why didn't you just come up to me and talk?" asked Luna.

"I - I was too shy." said Neville, "I thought that you might just drive me away with a cutting remark. After all, I am thought to be 'strange'."

"Don't worry about it." said Luna, "So am I. We're two outcasts brought together by fate. Now we're talking, what are you thinking?"

It took a while for Neville to formulate an answer to this one. He didn't want to say anything that would drive Luna away. He was developing deep feelings of affection for this strange, sweet, wonderful Ravenclaw girl.

"Talking to you has only strengthened my impression of you." said Neville, "Don't take this the wrong way, but I thought your voice just now was the loveliest thing I have ever heard."

"Wow!" exclaimed Luna, "I didn't think my voice was that wonderful. What's so nice about it?"

Again, Neville had to think before replying. He didn't want to say anything that would upset Luna.

"Although it's quite high pitched," said Neville, "It's gentle and so soothing and reassuring. It's a voice which expresses a love for everyone around you. When you first said 'Penny for your thoughts ', I was instantly relaxed. I knew in that moment that you were going to be my first real friend in Hogwarts. It was a lovely feeling."

"That's good," said Luna, "Because that's exactly why I came out here to see you. I want a real friend as well. It doesn't matter that we're in different houses. We can still see each other."

Neville felt a wave of calm relief wash over him. This beautiful girl was actually interested in him and wanted him as a friend - a real friend. As if to seal their new friendship, Neville and Luna linked their fingers. Luna gave Neville another little kiss. This time, he blushed.

"That was nice." said Neville, "It felt normal. I really think we're going to be friends now."

By this time the sun was setting. Luna suggested that the two of them take a walk round one or two of Luna's favourite parts of the grounds before they went back inside.

"That's a wonderful idea." said Neville as they got up off the grass, "I'll be able to see some of your world."

The pair of them went down the hill and headed for the 'Black Lake', where they sat down and Neville was encouraged to appreciate the peace and quiet of the place, as the daylight diminished. They sat by the lake holding hands until it was completely dark. It was a wonderful, peaceful experience for both of them.

"Let's go back towards the castle." Said Luna as she took Neville by the hand.

She led him out of the woodland surrounding the Black Lake as surely as if it were daylight.

"Shouldn't we be using our wands for light?" asked Neville.

"Not if you want to see the stars." replied Luna

When they returned to the grassy slope in front of the castle, the Stars had come out. They found a place to sit next to each other, from where they could see the South and South West areas of the night sky. Since they had not destroyed their night vision by using wandlight, all the stars were visible. The Milky Way arched right over them, from South-West to North-East. High up in the sky, slightly to the South-West, the 'Summer Triangle' was clearly visible.

"It's beautiful, isn't it." said Luna, ecstatically, "Do you see that big triangle of stars up there? Which do you think is the brightest?"

"The top right one." said Neville with some certainty.

"You'd be wrong." said Luna, "It's only 25 light years away. The brightest one is top left."

"But that's the dimmest one." said Neville.

"It's a very long way away." Said Luna, "Imagine someone shining a torch at us from Hagrid's hut. Then imagine someone shining a searchlight from several miles down the lake. They would seem to be about the same brightness. You are seeing Deneb as it was over 2,000 years ago."

Neville was enraptured by Luna's musical voice. It was so lovely that he could listen to it forever. She indicated the great square of Pegasus and the very faint smudge that was the Andromeda nebula. Before they went back into the castle, Luna suggested that they go down the slope a bit so that the Eastern sky was visible.

"How good is your eyesight?" asked Luna.

"Pretty good." said Neville.

"You see that faint patch of light very low down in the East," said Luna, "That's the Pleiades. Look at it carefully and tell me how many stars you see."

"Four, no, five." said Neville, "Ah! There are seven."

"Well done, Neville." said Luna, "Your eyes are okay. There are seven stars."

As they returned to the castle, Luna explained that an alternative name for the star cluster was 'The Seven Stars'. A number of English public houses were named 'the Seven Stars' after the cluster. As they approached the place where their paths would have to part, Neville looked sad.

"What's the matter?" asked Luna, "Why are you sad?"

"I'm about to say 'Goodbye' to you, Sweet Luna." said Neville, "And your sweet voice won't be serenading me anymore."

"You should realise, sweet Neville," said Luna, "That all good things have to come to an end. I'd love to see you tomorrow."

"You would?" asked a startled Neville.

"Of course," said Luna, "This evening, you have become my best friend. You're so lovely!"

"Would you like to eat with us at the Gryffindor table?" asked Neville, I'm sure Padma and Parvarti would like to be together."

"Of course I will." said Luna, "See you at breakfast, sweet Neville."

"See you at breakfast." said Neville, "You're so lovely."

With this, the pair went their own separate ways, Luna to Ravenclaw and Neville to Gryffindor. Neville felt a kind of euphoria that he had not felt before. Luna's late arrival raised few eyebrows as she often spent the evening on the astronomy tower. However, Neville showing up at about eleven o'clock did cause a stir.

"Where have you been all evening?" asked Hermione.

Neville smiled.

"If I told you, you wouldn't believe me." said Neville.

"Go on." said Ron.

"Just after dinner," said Neville, "I went out to get some fresh air. I was sitting a little way down the slope, when Luna Lovegood came up and talked to me. We've just spent the whole evening together. That girl has got such a lovely speaking voice. I could listen to it for ever."

"Nev's in love with looney." piped up Seamus in a mocking tone.

"Don't call her 'looney'." said Neville with a firmness he didn't realise he had, "She may have some odd beliefs, but she's a really sweet person. Once you get to talk with her, you realise she's special. I now regard her as my friend."

"Well said, Neville." said Hermione, "She must have affected you. I've never heard you speak so confidently. Keep it up."

"She's persuaded me that I'm not useless." said Neville, "If it's alright with you, I've invited her to eat with us tomorrow."

"That's a lovely idea." said Hermione, "You've obviously made friends with her, so it would be good to meet her properly. Anyway, several of us have Snape first up tomorrow, so we'd better get some sleep."

With this, the Gryffindor students left the common room for their dormitories.


	2. Chapter 2: First Kisses

**Chapter 2: First Kisses**

The next morning, the Hogwarts students came into the great hall for breakfast. Neville met Luna in the hallway in front of the great hall. The pair entered the hall and walked to the Gryffindor table, holding hands. This gesture did not pass unnoticed. Parvati Patil joined her twin sister at the Ravenclaw table. When Luna sat down to breakfast, Neville sat one side of her, while Ginny sat the other. After his mocking remark the previous evening, they made sure Seamus sat some way away.

Luna let Harry Potter borrow her copy of 'The Quibbler', which he found surprisingly informative as it appeared to support his assertion that Voldemort had returned. He was beginning to realise that 'The Daily Prophet' was merely a conduit for Ministry of Magic propaganda and that a lot of information was being withheld.

Ron, Hermione and Harry were all charmed by Luna's bright personality and her gentle voice. They decided from that moment on that they would never call her 'Looney' again. She had presented herself as a sweet natured intelligent girl, who was probably saner than any of them.

Having breakfast with Luna put Neville into a happier mood than usual. He felt more self-assured when faced with professor Snape and even answered the professor's questions accurately and with confidence. The Slytherins, particularly Malfoy were baffled by the newly assertive Neville. At the lunch break, once again Luna sat at the Gryffindor table, enjoying the company of her new friends. The answers she gave to questions surprised the Gryffindors as they, other than Ginny and Neville, had always thought of her as a bit scatty.

"Well, Luna," said Hermione, "I'm beginning to think you're the brightest witch here, and the nice thing about you is that you've got such a sweet personality."

"Thank you." said Luna, "I didn't think I was that clever."

"You're at least as clever as me," said Hermione, "But you hide it behind a mask of sweet craziness. I really hope your friendship with Neville prospers. You've already changed him."

"In what way?" asked Luna.

"He's more assertive." said Hermione, "You may not believe this, but last night when he eventually returned to the Gryffindor common room, he told off Seamus very firmly when he called you 'looney', and this morning he was very confident in Snape's potions class. He surprised all of us. He even stood up to Malfoy's insults."

"I knew the sorting hat must have put him in Gryffindor for a reason," said Luna, "And I told him. He must have taken it to heart."

"No, I don't think that's the reason." said Hermione, "I think it's because he now realises he has a true friend at Hogwarts. Isn't that true, Neville?"

"I suppose so." said Neville, "I'm certainly a lot happier when she's around me. I somehow feel I'm really me. It's happened so quickly."

"That's because I met you at the right moment." said Luna.

The rest of the day passed pleasantly for Neville. As they departed from lunch, Neville and Luna arranged to meet after dinner at the same place they had met each other the previous day.

At dinner, even Seamus was charmed by the delightful Luna. He would never again call her 'Looney'.

This evening, it was Luna who arrived at the meeting place first.

"Hello sweetness." said Neville, gently as he sat beside Luna on the grassy slope.

"Where would you like me to take you this evening?" asked Luna.

"Somewhere you might not want to take me." said Neville.

"Where's that?" asked Luna.

"I know you are fascinated with a part of the forbidden forest." said Neville.

"Oh, that!" said Luna, "You might not enjoy that."

"Why not?" asked Neville.

"Because the creatures I go to see there will be invisible to you." explained Luna.

"Now I am fascinated." said Neville, "What are they?"

"Thestrals." said Luna, "Only someone who has seen death at first hand can see them. I can see them because I saw my own mother die. Harry can see them because of Cedric Diggory. I had to explain them to Harry when he saw them for the first time. They're the creatures that pull the carriages from Hogsmeade Station to the castle."

"Okay," said Neville, "I suppose I might be able to hear them."

"Let's go then." said Luna, as the couple got up and started down the slope to the forest, "Where would you like to go after the forest?"

"One of your favourite places." said Neville, "I was fascinated by your description of the stars last night, so perhaps we could go up to the Astronomy Tower and see more of the night sky."

"That's so lovely." said Luna, "I love that place."

On the way to the forest, Neville and Luna encountered Hagrid.

"And where do you two think you're going on this bright evening?" asked Hagrid.

"I'm going to let Nev hear the thestrals." said Luna, "He's fascinated by my description of them."

"Well, best of luck!" said Hagrid, "They're tricky creatures, but I know Luna can handle them."

"Thanks, Hagrid!" said Luna.

Luna led Neville to the part of the forest where she knew that she would find the thestrals. As they approached, she urged caution.

"Don't forget," said Luna, "Although you can't see them, they can see you."

She produced an apple from her pocket and threw it in front of her. Neville heard a rustling in the leaf litter. The apple disappeared almost before it hit the ground. She offered a piece of meat to Neville and urged him to throw it slightly to his right at waist height. He did so. The result this time was more obvious. The meat had travelled barely three feet through the air, when there was a snapping of jaws and it disappeared. As this happened, Neville noticed a slight disturbance in the appearance of the leaf litter, almost as if something almost invisible was moving in front of it.

"I can't see the thestrals," said Neville, "But I can see vague transparent shapes moving around."

"You can see more than most people." said Luna, "I think that's because Bellatrix cursed your parents so close to death, that you're beginning to see them."

"That's rather sad." said Neville, "Because it means they will never recover. But it does mean I'll never deny your beliefs in strange invisible creatures. Thank you. I feel more at peace having 'met' the thestrals. The sun must be setting now. Shall we make our way to the astronomy tower."

Luna bade farewell to the thestrals and the couple made their way back.

"How was it?" asked Hagrid, as they passed his hut.

"Enlightening." said Neville, "I've learnt a lot."

"That's good." said Hagrid, "I hope you don't mind me saying this, but there seems to be something very special about you two. I know this is the first time I've seen you together, but I sense that you seem to match each other in a lot of ways."

"Thank you." said Luna, "I feel I've found a real friend in Neville. Good night, Hagrid."

After this exchange, the couple returned to the castle. When they reached the astronomy tower, the last light of the day was dying in the West. If anything, the sky was even clearer and darker than the previous night. The couple stood on the upper platform in silence for a while. Luna was the first to break the silence.

"What a lovely night." said Luna, "The sky is really dark. Perhaps we can look at the Milky Way."

Once again, Luna's gentle, musical voice enraptured Neville. Luna continued to explain what was visible above them. She pointed out the faint hazy band of stars that was the Milky Way. She also mentioned that the brightest part of it never came very high in British skies. As she followed the Milky way from its brightest area towards the zenith, she mentioned the 'W' shaped constellation of Cassiopeia. She also mentioned that it was one of two prominent Northern circumpolar constellations.

"We can see the other one, the Great Bear, from this platform." said Luna, "Ah! There it is."

Luna mentioned the pointers and their relation to the pole star. She then set Neville another eye test.

"You see the four main stars of the Great Bear?" said Luna.

"Yes." said Neville.

"Now look carefully at the middle one of the other three." said Luna, "What do you see?"

"Two stars." Said Neville.

"I'll show you something." said Luna.

She removed the weatherproof cover from a chunky looking reflector telescope and pointed it at the star in question and invited Neville to look through the guide scope.

"Three stars." said Neville.

"That's right." said Luna, "Now I'll show you something more interesting."

She redirected the telescope towards a star near Vega.

"You see that faint star just to the left of Vega?" asked Luna.

"Yes." said Neville.

"Now look at it through the guide scope." said Luna, "How many stars?"

"Two." said Neville.

"Now look at it through the main telescope." said Luna, "How many?"

"Wow!" exclaimed Neville, "There are two pairs of stars."

"And they are all part of one system bound by gravity." said Luna.

"Are we bound by gravity?" asked Neville, gently stroking Luna's cheek.

"No." said Luna, "We're bound by love."

With this, she embraced a surprised Neville and kissed him intensely on the lips.

"That was nice!" said Neville, "What was it for?"

"For you being you." said Luna, smiling.

Neville rose to the occasion and kissed Luna deeply and intensely, caressing her back from her shoulders to her waist.

"You're wonderful!" said Neville, as they disengaged their embrace, "We are bound by love."

"Before I show you another part of the sky," said Luna, "Take a look at this."

She moved the telescope very slightly and suggested Neville look at what she had found

"What do you see?" asked Luna.

"A ring of light." said Neville.

It's the Ring nebula." said Luna.

"It's amazing!" said Neville, "I'm coming to realise why you love astronomy."

"Before we go down," said Luna, "There are some more things I'd like to show you."

She directed the telescope towards a random part of the Milky Way and invited Neville to look.

"Wow! Stars and stars and stars!" exclaimed Neville.

She then pointed the telescope at the Andromeda nebula and invited Neville to look at it through the main telescope.

"It's beautiful," said Neville, "Like you."

"I showed you the Milky Way just now." said Luna, "The Andromeda nebula is another collection of billions of stars, just like the Milky Way."

"It must be a long way away." said Neville.

"You're seeing it as it was two million years ago." said Luna, "In other words, it's two million light years away from here."

"Wow!" exclaimed Neville, "Have you anything else to show me?"

"Would you like to see the loveliest planet?" asked Luna.

"Okay!" said Neville.

Luna produced her wand and said "Semilumos rubrus". A dim red light issued from her wand. She changed the eyepiece on the telescope and pointed it at a yellowish 'star' in the Eastern sky.

"Nox." said Luna, as she lined up the telescope exactly on the 'star', "Have a look at that."

Neville looked into the eyepiece of the main telescope and gasped.

"I'm almost speechless." said Neville, "I've seen pictures of it, but thought they were just pictures. I didn't know it was real."

"It's real alright. It's as real as you and me." said Luna, "It's the planet Saturn, with its rings."

"Thank you for that." said Neville, "I've learnt a lot tonight, and I've enjoyed another two hours of your wonderful voice."

"I'll put the telescope away," said Luna, "Then we can enjoy each other for a bit."

Luna, once again, used dim red wandlight to change the eyepiece of the telescope, then replaced the weatherproof cover. The couple sat down next to each other in silence for a few minutes. It was Luna who broke the silence.

"Nev?" said Luna, questioningly, "What do you really feel about me?"

"What a question!" said Neville, "I think you know. If I listened to my heart, it would tell me I'm falling in love with you. I feel a sense of euphoria when I'm around you. Your sweet voice enchants me. Yes – I love you."

"You've just told me what I already know." said Luna, "It's obvious from the way you look at me that you're totally in love with me. If it's any reassurance, I feel the same way about you. I know it seems to have happened almost overnight, but we've both been looking longingly at each other for weeks."

The couple stood up. Neville embraced Luna and kissed her deeply. Their hands caressed each other's backs intensely for about a minute.

"Wow! Neville!" said Luna, "There's no going back after that. I think I can say with certainty that we're a couple."

"Welcome to my rather ordinary world." said Neville, embracing Luna again.

"There's nothing ordinary about you or your world, sweet Neville." said Luna, "We're both special – to each other. Hagrid sensed that. With that thought, let's go down."

Neville and Luna left the astronomy tower and returned to their respective common rooms. They expressed their rapidly growing feelings for each other several times before their paths separated.

"So this is goodnight," said Luna as they reached the foot of the stairway to Ravenclaw Tower, "And goodbye for the time being."

"Yes," said Neville, "My least favourite part of the evening."

"I'll make it better for you." said Luna.

Luna embraced Neville and kissed him passionately. They stayed together in a full embrace for about a minute, before regretfully disengaging and going their separate ways.

"Same place, same time tomorrow?" asked Neville.

"Okay!" said Luna, "Same time, same place."

"Thank you for a lovely evening." said Neville, "Goodnight! See you tomorrow."

"Sweet dreams." said Luna, as she started up the stairway.

Neville watched her until she turned a corner and was lost to his sight. He felt a strong sense of euphoria and a deep contentment. He was not sure how it had happened, but within the space of two days, he had changed from a lonely slight outcast to a young man in love. For the first time in his life, he felt he was in charge of his life. He realised that he was among friends and that he had a very special friend. This feeling boosted his self-confidence to such an extent that even professor Snape no longer held any terrors for him. What had begun with furtive glances between the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw tables had swiftly blossomed into a deep abiding love between two slightly 'strange' young people, who had taken the trouble to actually get to know each other.


End file.
